AMC Theatres closes in Eau Claire's Oakwood Mall

Andrew Dowd, The Leader-Telegram, Eau Claire, Wis.
·2 min read

Oct. 3—EAU CLAIRE — AMC Theatres closed its location in Oakwood Mall this past weekend, which leaves one movie theater chain in operation in the Eau Claire area.

Paper signs seen Monday posted on the theater complex's doors stated that AMC Classic Oakwood 12 has permanently closed.

Eau Claire also no longer appears as a location on AMC Theatres' website. When searching for Eau Claire's 54701 ZIP code on AMC's website, an error message appears.

The nearest AMC Theatre location to Eau Claire is in Inver Grove Heights, Minn. According to the company's website, there are currently six AMC Theatres locations remaining in Wisconsin — Baraboo, Fitchburg, Johnson Creek, Madison, Manitowoc and Wauwatosa.

The Leader-Telegram sought comment Monday morning from AMC Theatres on why the Eau Claire location closed, but did not receive a reply by publication time.

A spokesperson for Brookfield Properties — the real estate company that owns Oakwood Mall — declined comment on the theater's closure, citing the company's policy that it does not speak on behalf of tenants.

Since it opened in 1986, Oakwood Mall has included a movie theater.

It started out as a location for Essaness Theatres Corp., which later changed its name to Excellence Theatres Corp. Then in the early 1990s, the theater became Carmike Cinemas. Under Carmike's tenure, the theater expanded from six screens to 12. Then in 2016, AMC Theatres bought out Carmike Cinemas.

With AMC's departure from the Eau Claire market, that leaves just a locally-owned chain that runs theaters in Eau Claire and Chippewa Falls.

Dan Olson, general manager of Micon Cinemas, said Monday that he'd heard about a week ago through friends in the theater industry that AMC would be closing its Eau Claire theater.

"We're not shocked, I guess," he said of his reaction to AMC shutting down.

Olson anticipates the patronage from there will migrate to Micon's two locations in Eau Claire or its Chippewa Falls theater.

"I would imagine we'll see an uptick in business," he said.

Though crowds have been returning to theaters, Olson said numbers have not yet gotten back to where they were before the COVID-19 pandemic.